Advice on a family dog...Which to get?

[karel]

Well I have decided to get a dog, working from home I have a lot of time on my hands to take it for plenty of walks and I love to get out in the fresh air these days instead of the inside of a bar.

I want it from a puppy so I can train it properly and my mum is a breeder and has many contacts to get it from some reliable, so all that side is pretty much sorted. Now what breed?

A few pointers but not written in stone would be.....

Medium sized

Not a constant barker

Pretty energetic

Intelligent, easy to train

Loving, not aggressive

Can anyone come up with any ideas on to which breed may suit me, sometimes the best people to ask are the ones who have them or know someone who has. The only one I have come up with so far is the Australina Sheepdog, which looks like it would suit me pretty well.

Thanks for any ideas........Paul

[Marincky]

Re: Advice on a family dog...Which to get?

Collie...

Incredibly intelligent, extremely loyal, safe friendly dogs.

I have two

[Karen Mac]

Re: Advice on a family dog...Which to get?

The English Pom would be an excellent choice.. not the teacup breed.. They are a bigger medium sized dog.. one of my poms is this. Not a yapper, not overly agressive unless it thinks its protecting you. They do need lots of attention but they are an excellent companion dog, and very smart. My dog plays basket ball..lol.. .If i dont have time to play with him, He will get in my chair and i have a small wastebasket near there, and toss the ball into the basket... then go retrieve it..and do it all again..

They LOVE walks but dont need a HUGE amount of room in your house. Dont eat a ton, and will be happy as long as they can be near you.

On the other hand... I suggest you visit the local pound. Ive gotten some of the best dogs ever there. Some do have a history of abuse or neglect, but, for the right person, be the best choice you ever made.

Karen

[karel]

Re: Advice on a family dog...Which to get?

Collie...

Incredibly intelligent, extremely loyal, safe friendly dogs.

I have two

Ramsey this was one of my choices, the only downside is that people have told me they are farm dogs and just want to be out 24/7. It will get at least 2 hours of walking time a day, but not sure if this would satisfy this breed. I know little about them apart from they are very loyal and energetic/intelligent, maybe you could tell me more about yours.

The English Pom would be an excellent choice.. not the teacup breed.. They are a bigger medium sized dog.. one of my poms is this. Not a yapper, not overly agressive unless it thinks its protecting you. They do need lots of attention but they are an excellent companion dog, and very smart. My dog plays basket ball..lol.. .If i dont have time to play with him, He will get in my chair and i have a small wastebasket near there, and toss the ball into the basket... then go retrieve it..and do it all again..

They LOVE walks but dont need a HUGE amount of room in your house. Dont eat a ton, and will be happy as long as they can be near you.

On the other hand... I suggest you visit the local pound. Ive gotten some of the best dogs ever there. Some do have a history of abuse or neglect, but, for the right person, be the best choice you ever made.

Karen

This one sounds interesting Karen, its probably me but I can't find anything under English pom, which I can only think is short for something and I am to dopey to realise. The description though sounds very suitable, so have you a link to a pic/details?

On the dog pound, yes I did go down yesterday, but there was nothing suitable, I am a bit wary also as the one near us is known for kennel cough and other things passed on, I have had 3 in the past from there, 2 were v poorly within a few weeks and the other I had for many years, so I am a bit wary, there is one furthur away with a better record of looking after them (40 miles) and I was thinking of having a look there.

[Marincky]

Re: Advice on a family dog...Which to get?

They do say they are farm dogs I agree, but I probably take mine for around 2 hours a day and they seem satisfied with that, one of them just sleeps most the day! When I take mine for a walk I would say around 80% of the other dogs we pass are also collies... very popular here in Worcester.

If you get one like my male dog 'Harley' you couldn't get more loyal and friendly... he won't let me take a pee without wondering if I am abandoning him!

They are both extremely quiet.. no barking, even when the doorbell goes. They both always go up to people we walk past or that come to the door and greet them with wagging tails but don't jump, growl or bark... perfect!

Which part of Yorkshire are you in?

[Marincky]

Re: Advice on a family dog...Which to get?


Abbie, she's about 92 in our age... an old girl



Harley, we got him from a rescue home.

[limebrook1]

Re: Advice on a family dog...Which to get?

How about an English Setter? Great fun!

Pom is short for Pomeranian (sp?) I believe.

I've got an old book called the 'Book of Delinguent dogs'. It goes through each breed and tells you (by a skull rating) whether they are going to eat you out of house and home, eat your neighbours children, or taking a lot of grooming/walking. Don't know if you can still get hold of it, but it's a good laugh and a good guide! (can't find it at the moment else I'd tell you the author).

[Karen Mac]

Re: Advice on a family dog...Which to get?

Pomeranian is POM. They vary in sizes, from teacup or miniature to mid size (15-20lbs) dogs. One similar to them is the spitz.. i think i uploaded my devil puppies in the wild bunch



The little one there is a miniature.. hes a pup there.. hes full grown about 6 lbs....Bear the silky coated one there is the Full size and Im told English Pom version of the breed... he weights in about 16 lbs. Mine happen to be the rarer BLACK of the breed. The mini is a tad yappy sometimes but i think thats cuz hes so small he thinks he has to yap to be noted. He sounds more like a windup toy tho..lol

They are both very loving dogs and keep my schedule. I sleep they sleep etc. With TWO of them tho.. thinking theyd occupy each other, they do kinda war over who is cuter and who is sitting in my lap sometimes...and they do follow me about.. bathroom .. shower, they just want to be where i am and they are happy. I have puppy beds in my office and toys.. and if they arent at my feet .. they are playing.. or sleeping right there.

oops.. i forgot.. they do require grooming.. but fairly small it doesnt take too much. Weekly baths and at least weekly brushing.. more during the molting seasons.

Karen

[karel]

Re: Advice on a family dog...Which to get?

Ramsey they are lovely, I have always had a soft spot for them. Seeing all these pics of dogs makes me want to rush out tomorrow and bring one home.

I am very tempted to look furthur into this breed and seriously consider going for it. I have googled the Australian sheepdog and it is very much like a collie. This in very much on my very short list, I see how loyal the are as they come in with walkers at my local pub and never leave the owners side. I am in Huddersfield by the way, loads of great countryside to walk in.

Trish again I looked into the English Setter and was impressed as I have always liked them. My mother has a little handbook also that lets you know more about each breed, this is where I came across the Australian sheepdog and a friend of my mother has one and loves them. But Setter was and is on the list.

Karen that breed I have seen about but never heard of, beautiful dogs. They are a little smaller than I would like but I will have a closer look at the breed online and find out more about it. Yours are very cute and I would love 2 to keep the other company, maybe something for the future.

Thanks for the help so far, a plan is forming.

[Marincky]

Re: Advice on a family dog...Which to get?

How about one of these...

[karel]

Re: Advice on a family dog...Which to get?

Ohhhhhh he is lovely, its just a shame I picked one 5 minutes before and here he is....................

[Marincky]

Re: Advice on a family dog...Which to get?

Nice!

[Vasili]

Re: Advice on a family dog...Which to get?

SHELTIE

Don't have a pix of my two I left in FL on this laptop.

[karel]

Re: Advice on a family dog...Which to get?

My mother breeds these Eric, here is her website with her lovely dogs on.

[limebrook1]

Re: Advice on a family dog...Which to get?

I laughed when I saw that Karen's dogs sleep when she sleeps - my two (a geriatric half blind crippled Great Dane and a Cocker Spaniel) have taken this a bit too far.

During the day they are excellent guard dogs - warning away anyone daring to walk or even drive too slowly past the house. (they don't understand where the boundary of the garden is!). They'll bark and go crazy when I come in from work too.

The other night, after a late meeting I arrived home when the rest of the household, including the dogs had gone to bed. What was I greeted with? No barking, no noise - in fact no movement at all! When I went into the hall (where they sleep) both dogs were sound asleep and didn't even lift their heads from the pillow.

Oh well, we'll be okay if we get burgled in daylight - but at nighttime any burglar could have a field day. These dogs were very definitely off duty! :)